Ryan Warrenburg 's Journal

March 20, 2008 Entry (Posted March 20, 2008)

ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

The last time I wrote I was in Tallahassee soaking up the sun, training hard, and preparing to run the US Cross Country Championships in San Diego. Since that time I have been battling a hip injury that has been tough to shake. I find it so bizarre that every time something creeps up on me it is always some sort of mystery injury. Not that having any kind of injury is ever good, but at least it would be nice to know what you are dealing with. The discovery factor is always the part of the equation that I forget about, and without fail becomes the most frustrating.

Fortunately, after looking long and hard, I believe I have found the problem, and am on the road to recovery. I have been waiting to write because I wanted to have some sort of good news to share. The US Cross race was the most frustrating race of my life, and nobody would want me projecting all that negativity. I really only had to miss about two weeks of training, and even within that I was able to continue to jog a little. I am back to building up my mileage while monitoring my hip and making sure it continues to improve.

It is funny when you get hurt how all you want to do is be able to enjoy a run without pain. You don’t care what kind of shape you are in; you just want to feel good. People always ask me what I think about when I’m running, and right now most of my thought process goes towards monitoring every step. However, I still have time to think about racing and coming back stronger than ever. I envision running in the Trials and the races throughout the season. Being able to get out there on the trails and think about running again has really improved my mentality (not to mention making me a little more pleasant to be around). It wasn’t too long ago that I wasn’t thinking too much about racing, I was thinking more about getting healthy. While things aren’t great yet, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Before I forget, I have to throw in a brief shout-out, but it is relevant because these events have motivated and inspired me to get back to training full throttle again. The shout-out goes to my alma-mater, Arizona State, for winning both the men’s and women’s team titles at the NCAA indoor meet last weekend, and especially my former roommate, Kyle Alcorn on an amazing weekend that included winning the 3K title. It had me glued to my computer all weekend. I got a headache, but I’m not sure if it was from staring at the computer screen or from screaming at it.

Anyways…

It is still a long road to Eugene, but luckily I have plenty of time. The plan is to open outdoors in early May with a steeplechase at Ohio State, which really doesn’t deviate from the plan I had before I got hurt. As it stands right now my time in the steeplechase will probably be on the cusp of qualifying for the Trials, so obviously I need to run faster. I certainly need to run faster if I want to get to the Trials and compete the way I envision myself when I’m out there slogging through my “getting back into shape” runs. It’s good to be excited again.

January 16, 2008 Entry (Posted January 17, 2008)

The last time I wrote we had just finished racing the Club XC National meet. Since that time I have been home to Indiana, out to New York, and down to Florida.

For most of the past few weeks I have been at my parents house in Indiana. It is always nice to go home and spend some time with my family and friends I don’t get to see for most of the year. However, the training in my hometown is not optimal, but the weather held up well and we didn’t see much in the way of snow or ice, so I can’t really complain.

I took a couple of weeks down in mileage without workouts following clubs and then I jumped right back into things. It was great to have some of my old high school teammates back in town to train with, and things went relatively smoothly.

I was fortunate to spend New Years in New York City racing the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run put on by the New York Road Runners. The race atmosphere is a really good mixture of fun and chaos. It is difficult to describe racing through Central Park in the dark with fireworks crashing right overhead, but it was a rush. The race itself didn’t go exceptionally well, but it was a really good experience, and evidence that the New York Road Runners are the best around.

Right now I am writing from my hotel room in Tallahassee, the site of our winter training camp. I’m pumped to be healthy this year and training hard down here. Granted, I did get in some really good cross training here last year, but this running thing is better for my sanity. However, the real exciting news is that we switched hotels this year. We are no longer at the infamous Travel Lodge, but we have moved next door to the Days Inn. Apparently they are tearing down the Travel Lodge this spring and the owner has “really let the place go.”

We will be here for about five weeks leading into the US Cross Country Championships in San Diego. Things have gone well here the first few days, the facilities really are great, and there really is nothing else to do but run, and play guitar hero, our Christmas present to ourselves. It is a mundane existence, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

December 10, 2007 Entry (Posted December 11, 2007)

Our brief fall racing season has concluded, and it was successful for me personally and our group as a whole. This past week we went to Ohio and defended our Club XC title that we won for the first time last year. It is really the one chance we get to compete as a team, and it’s something that I have always enjoyed throughout my career. The team competition is something that I miss from college and high school, and when we get the rare opportunity to do it at a post-collegiate level we like to take advantage of it.

The Club race was a lot of fun, a true cross-country course with plenty of mud. Although, as it was pointed out to me, it is a lot of fun if you have a good race, and zero fun if you don’t. Luckily enough it was a good day for ZAP as we put three in the top 10 and won the team competition by 31 points. I was fortunate enough to be able to win the individual title. It is really the only major race I have won at any level. I was never a high school state champion, and I never even won a conference title in college, so it was really exciting for me to win this past weekend.

 Even with the great day on the course, one of my favorite parts about the sport is how tight-knit the running community is. I may only see some people a couple of times a year at competition or I may have just met them, but there is something about runners that always makes me feel like we are all close friends. This weekend I think it was the mutual respect for anyone that went out and trudged through the 10K mud bath, but at any level and any event that respect and understanding is there. I can talk to another runner I have never met about things I couldn’t talk to some of my closest non-runner friends to because of that understanding. I am always fortunate to experience that, and this weekend was no exception.

Also highlighting the fall for me was finishing eighth-place finish in a very competitive Manchester Road Race on Thanksgiving Day, and picking up an 8K PR at the blazing Ntelos 8k two weeks earlier.

However, more than any race result I, along with the rest of the ZAP group, have put in some solid training this fall in preparation for the big spring and summer that lies ahead. I was able to stay healthy and put in some consistent training and really focus on getting in a huge aerobic base to build the track season on.

I am home in Indiana now until we head to Tallahassee in January for our winter training camp, and I am looking forward to continuing to string together solid training as we try to take our performances to the next level this outdoor season. Within that period I am looking forward to running the Midnight Run in New York on New Years Eve. It will be my first trip to the Big Apple, and what better time to make it? Along with that I will run an indoor meet in tune up for the US Cross Championships in February. I was injured all of last winter, so I am looking forward to my first real winter after college and my first US Cross Championships.

Obviously, the running community has been shocked and grieved by the death of Ryan Shay, but at the same time it has been the spirit of Ryan that has brought our community closer in remembrance of Ryan and what he meant to the sport. I never had the privilege of meeting Ryan, but I have heard plenty about him and the passion he had for the sport, and I had always strove to emulate that fire. I would encourage everyone to appreciate the time you spend with the people in the sport, and enjoy the experiences that running brings all of us. Happy Holidays to everyone, and maybe I’ll see you New Years Eve in New York!

Introductory Entry (Posted October 15, 2007)

Cross county weather has arrived! The leaves are changing colors and my favorite season is settling in here in the mountains of Blowing Rock. With it has come the cool air and great training weather.

This is the beginning of my second year with ZAP and I am really grateful to be a part of this program. The atmosphere is so supportive from Pete and Zika, our coach and director, all the way to the adult campers and donors that help keep this place running (no pun intended). I am coming off the first season, which was truly a transitional year for me, and I have great expectations for this Olympic Trials year.

The 2007 track season was a bit of a disappointment for me in terms of performance. However, there were some good things that came out of it that have me really excited for this year. I did manage a huge personal best in the 1500 meters. I really feel like a different runner than I did a year ago. I feel like all the hills we run in training have really made me stronger and more efficient. Pete and I learned a lot from the shortcomings and successes of the last year, and I think that is going to go a long way into my build-up towards the Trials. I guess it is best to do the learning in a non-Olympic year.

One of the things we are working on this year is to really have the mindset that everything we do from now until next summer is pointing towards the Trials. Even though we will race some in the fall and winter, everything will be with the Trials in mind. We have been working out, but everything has been long, aerobic work, building that base for track.

Jon Pierce, a.k.a. the new guy, and I have run races the last two weeks, a four miler on the roads and an 8K cross country race here at Appalachian State (my adopted school, especially after the Michigan game). It was a good fitness test for us, and it is always nice to get back out there and compete. After finishing off the track season on a bit of a sour note it was nice to get back out there and win a race. The build-up has been very slow, much more patient than in the past, and I am actually still ramping up, even after a couple of months running.

With a greater focus on the longer, base building workouts we have got a chance to work out with Joe Driscoll as he prepares for the Olympic Marathon Trials in New York. I had never really paid much attention to the marathon until I got to ZAP, and I have really become intrigued with the event. It is amazing watching someone prepare for that race. When I say we have done some work with Joe, that means we do our workout and Joe just keeps going. I can’t imagine running a forty minute progressive run and then having Pete tell me I had another half hour to go. I guess I did imagine it, and that image was ugly.

Anyways, I am excited about this year, not just for me, but for ZAP. We are coming off the best year in club history, maybe not highlighted by our Club XC Championship, but certainly including it, a title we will be back to defend in early December. On top of that I am excited about where American distance running is heading, and I am looking to make my mark on it. The Marathon Trials is going to be a really exciting way to start off the Olympic season, and even though I am not running it, it will kick off an exciting year for ZAP as well.